The Influence of Surgical Specialty on Oncoplastic Breast Reconstruction

The integration of oncological surgery with reconstructive techniques has gained popularity in the treatment of breast cancer. oncoplastic reconstruction after partial mastectomy can be performed by the breast surgeon or in cooperation with a consulted plastic surgeon. This study aims to objectively assess the differences in outcomes for partial mastectomy and subsequent oncoplastic reconstruction performed by either general surgery alone or in combination with a plastic and reconstructive surgery team.

Unilateral oncoplastic breast reconstruction cases were extracted from the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program databases from 2005 to 2017. Outcomes of cases performed by the general surgery team alone were compared with those in which the partial mastectomy was performed by the general surgeon with subsequent reconstruction performed by plastic surgeons. To account for cohort baseline differences, propensity score-matched analysis was performed.

In total, 4,350 patients were included in this study; 3,759 procedures were performed by general surgery alone versus 591 combined with plastic surgery. The analysis of propensity score-matched cohorts, comprising 490 patients each, showed no statistical difference in the risk for postoperative complications when surgery was performed by either of the 2 specialty services. A longer operative time and length of stay were found in the group reconstructed by plastic surgeons.

This study found no significant differences in adverse postoperative outcomes for oncoplastic reconstructions after partial mastectomy between the 2 groups. The data may indicate collaboration between both surgical specialties in oncoplastic breast care was not associated with increased morbidity in these patients.